–Ahsan Iqbal urges joint strategy on Kashmir issue
ISLAMABAD: A joint parliamentary party of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Tuesday instructed its members to “actively highlight the government’s failed foreign policy [resulting in the change of Kashmir’s status], Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit to the United States and facts related to Kashmir issue”.
The joint parliamentary meeting was held with PML-N President and Opposition Leader in National Assembly (NA) Shahbaz Sharif and the senior PML-N leader Raja Zafarul Haq in the chair.
The huddle agreed to highlight the Kashmir issue actively, criticising the “failed foreign policy” of the government.
Ahsan Iqbal briefed the meeting about the current situation in occupied Kashmir, saying that Indian aggression is on the rise in the region.
He said all the Hurriyat leadership have been house arrest and concerning news is coming out regarding the health of the Hurriyat leader Yasin Malik. Ahsan Iqbal suggested that it is time to adopt a joint strategy.
‘OPP PROTESTED WITH A HEAVY HEART’:
Addressing the reporters after the joint parliamentary session, Ahsan Iqbal said that the opposition protested “with a heavy heart” because the government’s resolution did not mention India’s scrapping of Article 370.
The PML-N leader said that all international laws recognise the border that separates Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) as the Line of Control (LoC) but India tried to convert it into an international border, which is not a trivial matter.
“India took such a major step and the resolution does not even mention it; this is why opposition protested today,” the PML-N leader said, adding that PM Imran was not in attendance even though the opposition had chosen to forgo the matter of non-issuance of production orders for arrested MNAs to show unity and discuss the Kashmir issue.
He further said the foreign minister, who is currently out of the country, should have returned by a chartered plane to brief the parliament on the situation even if it was for a day.